Not since I discovered the Postal Service’s “Such Great Heights” have I been this addicted to a song so far from perfection. Like “Such Great Heights”, “Don’t Say No” suffers from extremely trite lyrics — beginning with the lines “I used to say, “just follow your heart” / But my heart always led me in circles / I used to say, “just follow your dreams” / But my dreams always led me to murder” — but what it lacks in lyrical grace, it makes up for with the most compelling goth/electronic/folk arrangement of the year.
A simple guitar melody opens “Don’t Say No”, then a dark 4/4 beat transforms it into Depeche Mode-style dance, before “Where Is My Mind?”-esque vocals enter, the electronics become more complex, accordions join in, and the song enters distinct Patrick Wolf territory: urgent, unique, and stunning. Awkward lines like “If you’re brave enough you’ll just let it happen / If you’re brave enough you’ll just succumb” are soon redeemed by the commanding chorus of “Don’t say no to it / (Can’t say no to it)” and the listener is hooked.
Patrick Wolf is not the genius his press releases glorify him as — his romantic tales of escape, solitude, and lycanthropy (the title of his first full-length, which roughly means “the process of transforming from man to wolf”) are often ridden with cliché — but he is a unique voice, joining his Irish blend of folk with a mix of 80s-style dance music and current laptop electronica to magnificent effect. “Don’t Say No” merely suggests what Wolf has to offer.